TODAY'S QUOTE:
"He that lives in hope danceth without music."
George Herbert

Hope is like music, it feeds the soul in such a satisfying way. It has a tempo that keeps our feet marching, even through the most brutal terrain. Without hope we become listless and overwhelmed by even the slightest irritations. And life is irritating in the extreme... but it is also precious enough to treasure by wrapping it with hope, when things are less than perfect.
And...face it folks...less than perfect is how everything is. But hope smoothes the bumpy patches. It gives breath to the winded. It straightens crooked backs and winding thoughts. It is all we have sometimes, but it is always enough to get us across even the widest of chasms if we allow it to lift us up.
I always hope for a better tomorrow, and see the best in even the darkest today. I view hardship as a challenge and sorrow as a lesson that I must master before I can move on. Opportunities are not all dressed in party clothes, some are ragged and tattered. When I feel naked and exposed, I simply wrap myself with hope and dance forward at whatever pace is possible.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Calmness is the cradle of power."
Josiah Gilbert Holland

The ability to stay calm no matter what you are facing is very hard to master. With me it is an ongoing battle, sometimes I win... sometimes not, but I always try my best to not add to the insanity around me with any of my own. I have noticed that when I keep my balance it seems to help others retain theirs.
Doing it for the peace of the majority is a good reason to exercise it when I am tempted to unravel. When no other excuse is handy, I use that one as encouragement. Panic only adds fuel to any blaze; it is much easier to smother the flames with a peaceful attitude than it is to stop, drop, and roll once you are on fire.
The power of calm touches those closest to you in the most soothing way. It eases even the most brutal of worries in our lifetimes. When my husband was dying he was much less tormented by fear when I was cheerful and happy. A lot of the time it was an act for his benefit, but it was a small price to pay to see him relax inside the serene setting I created. Adding to his terror... by sharing my own would have been unfair, since there was nothing he could do to ease mine.
Being as calm as possible makes solutions easier to sort out. It inspires hope in even the most hopeless situations. Life takes its toll on each of us, giving it more than it demands is foolhardy. Using the power of serenity as fuel will get you through most anything. Panic only makes us run in tight circles, when the fastest way through the darkness is a straight shot toward the light.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"The power of one is above all things the power to believe in yourself. Often well beyond any latent ability previously demonstrated. The mind is the athlete, the body is simply the means it uses."
Bryce Courtenay

Possession or use of this power is not automatic; some have very little confidence in their judgment or belief in themselves, but it can be built up with exercise. The critical things other people say can affect our equilibrium, yet more often than not it is the critic in the mirror that does the most lasting damage. Training that voice to use encouragement instead of criticism is no walk in the park, but allowing negative reinforcement to be the navigator will guarantee a brutal journey to nowhere nice.
Why concentrate upon everything that is wrong? Any dark picture that is stared at will only grow bleaker unless some light is shown on its surface. Looking at just the negatives over-shadows the positives until forgetting that they even exist is all too effortless. Gazing at the good will not make the bad disappear, but it makes the next battle less overwhelming.
And battle we must, whether we want to or not. The bloodiest battlefield is often the one where we war with ourselves. Losing there can and will set up failures elsewhere. Blaming others for the things you are determined to hold soul-deep is as asinine and senseless as constructing a bomb, arming it then sitting smack dab on top to watch it explode.
Time would be better spent in building a bomb shelter. The most protection from life's explosions comes from the power a person grows inside. A healthy garden there begins with healthy seeds and the better weeded it is the more nourishment it will produce.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
You may get skinned knees and elbows, but it's worth it if you score a spectacular goal.
Mia Hamm, American Soccer Player

Knees and elbows will heal, but the opportunity to score a spectacular goal may never present itself again. Some things are once in a lifetime possibilities, if not met full force you may be sitting on the sidelines regretting that you missed the chance. It is much easier to swallow a defeat than it is to suffer through years of what if's, and if the only thing standing in your was is you....better move and find out what happens next.
It is not always the fear of failure that keeps us from giving it our best shot, sometimes the thought of success can be much more terrifying. But to not attempt at all is admitting that you see yourself as unworthy, and negative thinking can derail even the best of intentions.
Rigid people are never happy, life has a bend and flow that they never master. Rigid thinking is all hard lines and it keeps us imprisoned in a place where the brass ring is well out of reach. Never stop trying for something better, richer, or more fulfilling than what you possess right now. You may be battered and bloody at the end of the battle, but even if you do not score a spectacular goal, trying is a victory all on its own.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Life can be lived more fully if people simply quit pretending to be who they were told to be, and be who they really are…"
Doug Firebaugh

I spent 40 years trying to please loved ones, dancing to whatever rhythm they chose to play on my heart strings. I was rarely rewarded with anything except a changed song whenever I came too close to getting the steps right. When their objective was to keep me constantly off-balance that was how I constantly stayed.

I do not dance much anymore, unless I am the one spinning the tunes.

I still have a hunger to please... that is simply part of my nature. I just learned the hard-ass way that if the tempo does not match my own it is much better to be a wall-flower than it is to trip the light fantastic with a puppeteer. The knowledge I gleamed from 40 years of dancing lessons is invaluable to my mental health and emotional happiness.

I know things, learned in brutal ways, that have emancipated me from the special prison of CONDITIONAL love. I am certain of many things now that eluded me in my youth. Hard knock school has its true rewards and freedom is one of its highest honors. Living in certainty is so much better than settling for being eternally clueless.

Some of my favorite certainties are as follows:

Anyone who truly loves me will not seek to alter the very things that make me who I am.

I am not a blank canvas, to be painted on by other artists.

I am a masterpiece of my own creation.

Each of us can claim a masterpiece trophy, what we do with it is the only uncertainty.

Not everyone who carries an instrument is a virtuoso, some are tone deaf and should never be allowed to even play, let alone lead the band.

In the struggle to live at peace we often do what seems easiest at the time, but...

It is much easier to learn how to play your own drum than it is to try to force a monkey to learn the measured rhythmn of the song that will soothe your soul.

It is foolish to expect him to even care what tune he plays when all he really wants to do is make noise and watch you flinch.

The only lasting happiness comes from being comfortable, first inside your own skin then inside your own space... and that cannot be accomplished if you are constantly playing name that tune with those closest to you. Snatch the drumsticks away from the primates and set your own tempo...it's the only way to dance.

I got the following as an email and liked it enough to place it here. Enjoy and pay it forward...THINK ABOUT IT...LET IT GROW...THEN DECIDE


The Cracked Pot

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.
Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.
"I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."
The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them."
"For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."
Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them. So, to all of my crackpot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path!

TODAY'S QUOTE:
"There is more in us than we know. If we can be made to see it perhaps for the rest of our lives we will be unwilling to settle for less."
Kurt Hahn

This quote is so true and I needed to remember its message. I am days and days behind in my writing, after a crash and burn moment or two dealing with some hard realities. In my confusion I forgot to do what always helps. For just a short time I overlooked who I am, and what makes me tick...tick...tick. I am made of much stronger stuff than anything that pushes against my space. My orbit will return to its rightful tilt if I just keep that reality at the top of the list I am struggling through.
I am not one to settle for crumbs for long. I give all, but if nothing comes back I limit the length of service given to any lost cause. As my soul-mate says, "I own this place." Renting it to fools seems a waste of pristine space, and each of us is pristine in our own fashion.
Settling is for dust. Humans are not made to settle without a price that is steeper than any of us can afford, if happiness is the our destination. I have had many moments in my lifetime where settling for whatever I was given was almost costly enough to kill my soul. How I lived through some is a mystery, how I thrived through others is a miracle, but the fact that I did should encourage everyone who reads here.
I am nothing special, no more human than the next person and if I can do it anyone else can too. All it really takes is determination to own what really belongs to you. I do not mean material things at all. I do not value manufactured products in a personal way, having none I would truly pine for except my computer. I only put it above the rest because of my writing, and the people I reach through its practice. What I truly value are the mostly hidden things inside each of us.
Life is so precious, even when it is less than perfect, and we are too. The real trick is internal balance and harmony. I found the place inside of me where the control switches are and nothing can truly defeat me as long as I stay within reach of them. Settling demands that you hand control over to someone else and that is never healthy in the long run. I learned that the hard way, from more than one source, but I finally have it centered at the top of my list of things to always remember... no matter what else I do forget.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Refrain from asking what is going to happen tomorrow, and everyday that fortune grants you, count as gain."
Horace

There are times when thoughts of tomorrow torment a weary mind, wondering about someone else's agenda can cause us to fly in a holding pattern that is most disconcerting. After a short spell spent circling "What If Town", I travel on toward "There's No Sense In Fretting Village" and when I am very lucky I reach the edge of "I Only Give A Shit About The Here And Now Town" long before the day has ticked away too many wasted minutes.
What will happen... will happen, pre-worrying only lengthens any eventual wounding or shortens whatever possible happiness we already possess. Worry is mostly a useless emotion, changing nothing by its use except making obstacles grow in stature inside our panicked minds.
In all honesty, I would rather slowly open the gift of each new day without fretting about next week, or next month, or next year. I would rather savor every moment without wondering about time yet to come. I would rather digest one banquet before I sit down to another. I would much rather gain today than fret about yesterday or worry about tomorrow, so truly claiming today leaves me little time for anything else.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

CLICK ON TITLE FOR ARTICLE AND VIDEO ABOUT A SORT OF BREAST CANCER THAT MOST WOMEN ARE UNAWARE OF, BUT SHOULD LEARN ABOUT...ASAP.

TODAY'S QUOTE:
"If you take a single step toward positive change, that divine energy will take a hundred steps toward you. New worlds and unbelievable possibilities will open up for you. The synchronicities that will begin appearing in your life will become a source of delight and amazement."
Joan Borysenko

Synchronicites are defined as the relation that exists when things occur at the same time. Synchronizations are the adjustments that causes something to occur or recur in unison. There is a symmetry to life when it is in perfect synch. True balance and real happiness can only come from embracing positives. Change is the key to every locked door, without it our existence is stunted to an area barely large enough to sustain life.
We cannot really live inside of such a barren territory. Going through the motions is about the best that can ever be achieved if we are not willing to mutate throughout our lifetime. Change should be viewed as an adventure, but all too often it is seen as an enemy. When one level is mastered it is only right and proper to go on to the next. If you reach a place that is too far above your ability then retracing steps is an option, while going as far as you deserve is a privilege. Just the attempt is a victory of sorts, trying is its own reward, succeeding is the icing on the cake.

Inside of each of us there are treasures just waiting for discovery. Dreams lay breathlessly waiting for life. Hopes are within easy reach, propping up whatever is sagging from too much pressure is a happy task. Depth is something that can only be reached by digging, and who better to man the shovel than the one who owns the property.
Life is not a spectator sport. The weak walk in safe ruts, never disturbing the surface of things. They are quite safe from most deep agony, but joy eludes their grasp as well. Life... real life... is awarded to those who push the envelope, risking all for just the chance to feel one moment of pure joy.
Unpolluted exhilaration only comes from positives. Negatives are soiled by nature, better left in the dirt than planted in any living tissue. They narrow our point of view to mean slits in the walls that surrounds them, draining the nourishment from any healthy roots within reach.
We all program our own minds to accept or reject whatever enters there. If your brain if filled with garbage, guess who is to blame? The power of will is astonishing, but it has to have someone at the helm to be of any use. During a fire it takes a fireman to direct the water to put out the flames, a hose without someone to point it is quite useless. In the same fashion, a mind left to its own devises will ramble and drift this way and that, directing the traffic inside your mind will avoid any major crashes. And clarity of thought will keep the traffic flowing smoothly upon any change worth making highway.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission." Eleanor Roosevelt

This is so true, but I find it extremely tiresome too have to demand what should be mine without the asking. Respect is important in any interchange, and belittling is disrespectful. Try to make me feel small, so you can seem taller, and I will chew your feet off as soon as the shock subsides.
I will not feel less whole just because someone else needs me to react in a certain way to feel complete. I will not fragment myself to glue someone else together. If you need a hand up... I will reach out without hesitation. If you need a step ladder... they sell them at the hardware store... so please keep your dirty shoes off my throat. I have placed control in other hands, but I learned some brutal lessons that help keep me much safer from footsteps of the brutal kind.
Any power given freely can be recalled in the same fashion at any time. Nobody else has control of what you take to heart. Fools speak more often and much louder than the wise. Volume in measure or acoustics does not signal that what is said is valid. Truly speaking, the opposite is true; screamed words or endless sentences are mostly fierce posturing by a weak individual. Nine times out of ten it is only hot air, blown for their agenda and has less to do with you than they ever wish you to realize. Puzzle that out and disarm them instantly. True power belongs in the hands of each individual to play whichever role we choose. If I am weak it is because I allow myself to be so, and when I tire of any jabbing by the clueless, I simply grab their pointer and break it over my will to survive.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Inside every older person is a younger person -- wondering what the heck happened."
Cora Harvey Armstrong

Age is such a funny thing, seeming a concept much more often than it resembles reality. A number is just that, and words on official papers fade with the years. Some of us age at hyper speed and some drag their feet.
I say why rush to be aged, why hurry to be old, why run toward the rocking chair if you can choose a more productive or exciting destination. If we live long enough we will get old, if we live fully we will be well-aged, and if we are lucky our body will crumble long before our mind ceases to function.
There is an eternal teenager inside of each of us; some let it steer, some smother it into submission, some deny its existence, but the wise among us validate it by looking through those magical eyes from time-to-time. Yes, we risk the horror of suddenly remembering our age on paper, but we also have the chance of reclaiming how young we still remain.
I do not dwell on paper age, either with myself or my friends. It says very little about my reality, it is just a concept after all, and tells no major things of importance about my life. Yes, I am 52 on paper, but older in experience, younger at heart, ageless of soul, so which is the true measure??
I will not waste my time acting out someone else's idea of how my paper age should behave. I will not age my heart or shrivel my soul for the sake of conformity. I will be a crazy quilt of all the ages I possess and in that way stay less fractured than most. And when I hit that rocking chair I will have some precious memories to contemplate, but that is surely eon's from the here and now. Hell, I don't even own a rockin chair yet and I'm in no hurry to obtain one if it dooms me to a stationary position in the stunted space of my paper age.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT RIDE

THEN YOU DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Keep your face in the sunshine and you can never see the shadow."
Helen Keller

We are truly masters of our own fate in ways we do not always care to admit. It is much easier to pretend to have little choice in most things we battle, shouldering any responsibility forces us to cope with the very issues we are trying so hard to ignore. Huge things cannot be easily controlled. but dominate enough of the small stuff and larger ones shrink to a much more manageable size. Leave it all to twist in the wind and any stiff breeze will take you for a mighty ride.

The choice is always ours to make; we all have the same options for coping with or caving under whatever pressure our lives contains. The rainbow really does exist, but if you never raise your head it might just as well be an imaginary figment. If the view does not suit, adjust and refocus. If thoughts attack disarm them before the whole army appears to claim unprotected territory.

Looking on the bright side keeps footsteps firm and detours to a bare minimum. Treading through shadow can be risky, heading in that direction willingly seems foolhardy in the extreme. Travel toward the light, keeping all shadows to your back. Do not imagine them as nonexistent, nothing disappears just because you refuse to acknowledge its presence. Instead, see yourself as always one step ahead of the darkness trap, head up and searching for the rainbow.

THINK ABOUT IT

LET IT GROW

THEN DECIDE

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TODAY'S QUOTE:
"If you train your mind to search for the positive things about other people, you will be surprised at how many good things you can observe in them and comment upon."
Alan Loy Mcginnis

When special attention is given to positives they tend to multiply, commenting on them only adds more reason for others to act accordingly. Approval is a very heady motivation for most of us, it can strengthen a sagging resolve in no time flat. Pleasing someone you care about is so satisfying, especially if they are alert enough to notice and not take it for granted.
I always look for the best, and most times that is what I find. There is no use expecting the worst, whatever you serch for in life will be what is found.

Cherokee Wisdom
One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son the battle is between two 'wolves' inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf wins?"
The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

TODAY'S QUOTE:
"When it is dark enough, you can see the stars."
Charles A. Beard

The darkest times have a habit of resetting priorities, suddenly ordinary things develop a new importance. Small pleasures are sweeter, larger ones become almost magical, people seem more precious, and each beckons with a brilliance that was unnoticeable before this space of deepest shadow.

In truth, they are no more vital to our happiness than they were before. They simply look bigger from our stunted position. We retreat deeper inside ourselves when storm clouds appear, withstanding the next tempest is much easier if the time spent there is used wisely. There is so much clarity in a place where we are forced to face ourselves without mask or costume.
 
The dawning of understanding is only one of the positives that glimmer and shine while we stumble through an eclipse. Using the things that suddenly shine with such brilliance, against the backdrop of adversity, to navigate by is the only way to travel safely. Do not underestimate the illumination that comes from starlight alone. Sailors have always used them as guides. Prudent travelers learn to pilot their vessels in the same fashion, minimizing the amount of time spent drifting at the whim of the weather. THINK ABOUT IT... LET IT RIDE...THEN YOU DECIDE!!!

TODAY'S QUOTE:
"Don't let negative people determine your self-worth."
Denis Waitley

Negatives function as drains, while positives operate like fountains. Negative people can quickly suck the life out of you, even in the best of times, but when they criticize their words cut soul-deep. Tender hearts get crushed under the weight of a heavy tongue, and if it is wagging in the mouth of someone you love it is hard not to believe the messages it delivers.

Love is not meant to deflate; to insulate, inflate, and elevate are loving actions, none of those can be accomplished by using negative means. How could a minus add anything of value to a friend or loved ones journey? Hard truths can be gently said, if it is your place to voice them, but most would be much better left unuttered. Examining your motives, with an open mind and a closed mouth, might save everyone a lot of agony.
If you are on the hearing end of derogatory remarks do not instantly swallow them as if they are factual. If you love the one talking it makes it harder to ignore. The person speaking may have an agenda that depends on your taking the baited hook they cast your way, but be a fish with a clue and swim on by.

I received the following as an email. It was a joke with some great advice mixed in, so I deleted the foolishness that made me laugh, and share here the profound that made me think. I added a new flash movie to this post, under title, just click it to watch. Enjoy, pay it forward, and as always.... think about it.... let it ride... then YOU decide!!!

In ancient Greece (469 - 399 BC) Socrates was widely lauded for his wisdom. One day the great philosopher came upon an acquaintance who ran up to him excitedly and said, "Socrates, do you know what I just heard about one of your students?"
"Wait a moment," Socrates replied. "Before you tell me I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test."
"Triple filter?"
"That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my student let's take a moment to filter what you're going to say. The first filter is truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"
"No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..."
"All right," said Socrates. "So you don't really know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my student something good?"
"No, on the contrary..."
"So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him, even though you're not certain it's true?" The man shrugged, a little embarrassed. Socrates continued. "You may still pass the test though, because there is a third filter - the filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my student going to be useful to me?"
"No, not really"
"Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell me is neither True nor Good nor even Useful, why tell it to me at all?"
Keep this philosophy in mind the next time you either hear, or are about to repeat a rumor.